This episode brings snippets from the 14 conversations I had with guests working in the humanities and social sciences and oriented towards social healing in Nigeria. In these conversations, we discussed the ideas that animate their research, their career journeys and how they use their work to make tangible impact in their communities.

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction to Sweet Medicine Podcast

01:13 Personifying Nigeria: A Patient's Perspective

04:57 Nigerians' Emotional Landscape: How have we been taught to think about how to be in the world?

09:17 Innovation is responding to our reality, to the gift of now

10:56 The Complex History of Nigerian Identity

16:13 Understanding Harm and Responsibility

Guest list (in order of appearance in the episode):

• Aaliyah Ibrahim, a writer and international development practitioner
• Didi Cheeka, a filmmaker, critic and archivist
• Amarachi Iheke, a PhD student researching radical re-imaginations of African selfhoods in South Africa
• Obayomi Anthony, an artist, photographer, filmmaker and National Geographic explorer
• Israel Wekpe, a theatre director and lecturer at the University of Benin
• Tobiloba Akibo, a landscape architect and researcher,
• Mobolaji Otuyelu, an entrepreneur and an organiser for the Federation of Informal Workers (FIWON)
• Fr Anselm Adodo, the founder of the Pax Herbals https://www.paxherbals.net/about-us/
• Gbope Onigbanjo, a researcher and consultant working in the fields of international affairs, peace studies, and political economy with an MA in Conflict Resolution in Divided Societies
• Oluwakemi Agbato, a design writer, researcher and founder of RENIKEJI jewelry design practice
• Adefolatomiwa Toye, an architect and PhD student researching the role of Nigeria’s first universities in the development of national identity
• Gbemi Adekoya, a psychotherapist

Takeaways

• The humanities and social sciences are crucial for social healing.
• Nigerians often live in a state of survival mode.
• Art can serve as a powerful medium for social change.
• Understanding historical context is essential for identity formation.
• Exemplary violence is a normalized part of Nigerian society.
• Innovation should respond to local ever-changing realities.
• Knowledge becomes real when it is personally relevant.
• Trauma can perpetuate cycles of harm within families and communities.
• People are complex and often face moral dilemmas.
• Healing requires a collective effort and understanding of our histories.

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